Springfield daily republic. [volume] (Springfield, O. [Ohio]) 1887-1888, 1887-08-19
TOMBS NEAR POMPEII.
INTERESTING ACCOUNT OF A VERY
RECENT DISCOVERY.

A Street of Tombs and Their Contents.
Seven Large Statues Found-Rudely
Traced Inscriptions - Cinerary Urns,
Tablets. skulls and Bones
In the year go the digging of well
revealed the existence of the ancient city Of
Herculaneum beneath the modern towns
Of RoSini and PurtIci. The same opera
ton on the part of the owner of vine
yard situated some distance To the east Of
the amphitheatre Of POmpeii led TO the
discovery, about six weeks ago, Of a street
Of tOmhS running in direct line from
Pompeii 10 NOcera. Taking advantage of
the visit of an archaeological friend of
mine. who had just returned from n sci
entitic tour Ia Pcrgamon, | accompanied
him and Professor Sagllano directors of
the excavations, To visit the newly dlscoy
cred ruins.
The little space at present dug ont has
ught 10 light. deep below the surface
Y. - ground. n tolerahly wide and well
M --.,. ancient road, of a Kind of maCadam
cOnst ustion, slightly arChcd i'll the center
So as 10 allow the rain water To run OFF
and with a low earthly bank on either
side, on the top OF which are the seven
{ tomhs recently eXCavatcd, four on one
side and three on the other. This road
runs nearly due east i'll the direction from
Pompeii To Nocera, the portion now eN-
cavated lying about 900 feet from the
pompeiian amphitheutre, and il is sup
posed that when it i all eXcavated back
to Pompeii a city gate will be found at its
commencement. Ii il also not improbable
that near the city it will be found to be
paved with lava, like the celebrated street
Of Tombs ON the western side.
UNDER PUMlCE STONES.
Should the whole he found 10 be as
closely lined with tomhS rs is the portion
laid bare, il will bc one of the most inn
portant discoveries lately made in this
part of the world. Unfortunately money
is wanting and the excavation is going on
hut.slowly. The ancient level Of the street
being here very low. the road is first coy
cred 10 the depth Of ten or fifteen feet
with pumicc stones elected from Nesuvius
during the great eruI ton of 1872 Then
comes thin layer q! ashes; then again
stratum of pumicc about ten inches thick.
another thin line of ashes, and over all
earth several feet deep. Just below this
upper earth We're found seven large stat
Ties. which had evidently surmounted the
tombs beneath. On the road itself can be
seen the slight depressions or ruts caused
by the wheels of passing vehicles. The
tombs are erected on a straight lire on
either side. and where one is set rather
back it has low stone balustrade. which
keeps the liIe and extends beyond the
tomb, probably incloSing a space pur-
chased for subsequent tombs. and then
the next tomb is again built forward on
the original line. Thus this little portion
o. cNcavated street has neat and sym
mctrical appearance.
The first tomb eNcavated, being the one
nearest to Pompeii on the north side of
the road, is covered with rude inscrip-
tions painted in red, one Of which is no.
table: it is an advertisement apprising the
passers by that runaway horse has been
found of such size and color, and that
the owner may have it by applying to a
smith from Nocera. at the bridge over the
Sarno, toward Stahin. In fact, such in
scriptiOns are found on all the tombs,
which have evidently served as public
newspaper on the thickly frequented road
There are besides many graphites One
person has scratched his name. with the
word Remember" beneath. In one the
letter V is very interesting, from the fact
that it is marked with dot i'll the fork of
the V, which is IA reminiscence of the Os-
can character.
THE INSCRIPTIONS.
Nearly all the rudely traced inscriptions
(which Of course have nothing to do with
the true inscriptions on marble slabs, that
denote the name and qualities Of the de
ceased relate TO Nocera. showing the in
fluencc of that neighboring town on Pom
pei. One of the marble inscriptions gives
to Nocera the surname of Constantia. in
relation 10 its faithfulncss-a surname. |
believe, seen here in this connection for
the first time One of the tOmbS had been
surmOunted on its four corners with stone
pineapples, interesting as suggestive of
this style of decoration as noticed in the
immense single pineapple said to have
crowned liadrian 5 tomb in Rome. 1t is
curious that in the inches of one of the
tombs stand two small headstones in
stead of urns.
The statues, cinerary urns, loose marble
tablets, skulls and bones have been de-
posted in the room OF a country cottage
hard by, all except one statue, which lies
prone upon the ground near the eXcava-
ton, and serves, by n string passed round
its neck. tO hold fast the end of a ragged
canvas stretched on a small tree as a
shelter from the sun--a menial Office To
which, no doubt, the man who was of suf
ficient consideration TO have statue
never dreamed that his elligy would ba
degraded. The full length statues are all
portraits, and evidently very good ones,
for each Of the faces is highly character
istic. One elderly male figure has a fine
head and the mouth of an orator: another
is handsome young man of Grecian
type; one is dignified old woman, grave
with years and hUnurs, with deep lines ut
the corners of the very peculiar and firmly
pressed lips, and style Of dressing the
hair which reminds one of the statues of
LiVia. Then there are. besides, Il middle
aged and a young woman Of smoother
countenanCes, the latter with small. rather
pointed and pinched features. On the
hair Of one of the male statues there are
traces of color, and, as the figures are
sculptured rather roughly in stone, the
style resembling that of Capua, ii is pos
sible that the whole figure was once COW
cred with paint. forgot 10 say that all
the tumbs found are those Of freedmen.-
Naples Cor. London News.
Travel on "UnIucky Days.
We are led to believe that people are be
coming more and more enlightened as the
wears and generations pass. BE that as it